Breath of Memories
by lontanissima
Summary: An add on to episode "Turn Down". A small scene between Sharon and Andy just before the whole episode starts.


_This is an add on to "Turn Down"._

 _A small scene between Sharon and Andy just before the whole episode starts and they go out with Rusty and the cake for Buzz. A result of brainstorming session with Amie, hon I hope it's how you pictured it._

 _Thanks to everyone who enabled this idea (you know who you are), but especially to my wonderful Beta_ **OldFashinedGrl.**

 _All mistakes are mine. Not the characters with those I only play._

 _The cover is made by_ **anonymouspebble** _ **.**_ _Thank you!_

 _Enjoy._

* * *

Sharon paced the break room from the counter to the tables and back again, a small frown on her face. There was a sense of worry settling in her mind which was getting harder and harder to avoid. She had just gotten off a call with Rusty and the boy hadn't had good news for her either. She moved closer to the door, lifted herself up onto the balls of her feet and tried to see if Andy was on his way but there was no one in the hallway. She took another glimpse at her watch and sighed almost with defeat. It was getting late and it could all be ruined.

Impatience was definitely getting the better of her.

They had organized a surprise for Buzz, or rather, she had suggested, in a strong manner, that something more elaborate be arranged for this occasion than just helium filled balloons and a greeting card. Buzz deserved to really celebrate his big achievement. She had known that Provenza would be the hardest to convince when she pitched the idea. Although he could argue all he wanted until he was blue in his face. Andy said he would take over in case Louie became too much of a pain in the backside. She could handle Provenza and his grumpy moods. It was nice to see that Amy was on her side and it seemed that Julio needed this, too. It was an important moment, not only for Buzz, but also for the team as a whole. They needed to reconnect, to get stronger over this, to absolutely leave behind and move past what had happened the last few hard months. It was an _occasion_ and she would never pass up the opportunity to celebrate.

Except nothing was going as planned.

Buzz would be arriving in the murder room any minute and nothing was ready. There was a bag laying on one of the tables ready to be opened, containing sparkling candles and plastic plates and forks but the main focal point was missing, the cake of course. This is what happened when your teenage son wants to be helpful but gets so wrapped up on the internet, with texting or with his new project that he loses track of time. She should have let the bakery deliver it to the station, but no, Rusty wanted to help. He was very determined when he swore he would be on time. She understood why it was important for him. He wanted to do it for Buzz. It was a small gesture that would mean so much. Rusty wanted to be a part of it and she knew Buzz would be very happy to see him there among the others. So for now there was nothing more she could do other than wait.

The sound of the opening door interrupted her rambling thoughts and she spun around quickly. With short rapid steps she got to the door and held it open for Andy as he rolled in the empty cart. He was bit out of breath and it almost looked like he had been running with the cart from the elevators to the break room.

"Is the kid here yet?" he asked moving the cart into the middle of the room so they could start to get everything ready.

"He is running late," her voice ran dangerously low indicating her displeasure with how little time they had. Andy looked at her with bit of surprise and an arched brow. He stepped away from the cart and walked closer to her trying to understand how upset she really was.

"There is still time," he tired to reassured her. She was working herself into a certain state and it was actually unnecessary, not yet anyway. He knew the guys would stall Buzz if needed. Maybe they'd even give him bit of a hard time, which would make this surprise even more worth it.

"I know, it's just..." a soft sigh escaped her lips as she diverted her eyes from his. She really wanted this to go as planned. After months of living in a heightened state of dread caused by Stroh's escape and fearing for Rusty's life, after jumping with a start at every little sound in the middle of the deep dark night, after so much time looking over her shoulder and waiting for the boogie man to get them all, after all of that, it was time for her to benefit from life, too. She had lost enough time in a prison of fright and horror, of her own nightmares haunting her. Now she was finally ready to enjoy the moment. Maybe it wasn't only the team that needed this celebration. Maybe it was her too.

However, she couldn't shake this unsettling feeling that it would go wrong. Probably, she was just still touchy after the Christmas party. All that meticulous planning that almost went to waste. Although the way it turned out, it was one of her favorite memories in this very place. Her teeth grazed the soft skin of her bottom lip while her gaze swept over the man that stood near her. She knew he was watching her, standing tall in his uniform. There was a sparkle in his eyes. She noticed it the second he greeted her that evening, after he had come back all changed. In that outfit he was distracting her, more so than he ever did on any other occasion. She should not be this affected by men in uniforms. Sharon had spent almost her whole life around them. And yet, her pulse quickened at the sight of him. She felt a flush of heat spreading through her body, leaving her bothered, anticipating. The feeling caused her to smile at him even more, something she realized was happening more and more. They also had plans for tomorrow tonight. The Dodgers were playing at home and Andy had gotten dugout tickets for the whole team. Sharon just couldn't wait to go, really. She wanted to spend a night watching the game, getting lost in the fireworks and ever since his invitation she had started to crave Dodger Dogs with hot chilly salsa badly.

"I get it," and deep down he did. He knew very well how on schedule she liked to be. After all these years he wasn't surprised by her reaction at all. He saw her checking the time so often that it had become a part of her. "Let's just start to get it ready. I'm sure Rusty will be here any minute," and with that his hand reached to her shoulder and slid down her arm in a light caress.

Sharon felt some of the tension leave her body. She smiled at him, brightly. In last few days she had started to notice another thing that had shifted between them. One simple touch from his warm hand could soothe her with such ease. This enduring friendship they had found, it was something she was still trying to put into the proper perspective.

"By the way, what took _you_ so long?" she pointed a finger at his chest with mock accusation in her tone.

"Oh you would not believe… I had to go down to the morgue for this damn thing. Apparently Robbery Homicide caught a case and they needed all the carts for evidence. They even took some of ours." His lips turned down in a pout that she would defiantly classify as adorable.

"Oh the inconvenience," she teased with an exasperated expression filled with fake sympathy.

He grinned and shook his head at her. "You should have seen Morales' face when I told him why I needed to borrow it. Good thing we have a tablecloth to cover it with. I don't really like to think about what he had on it."

"Then don't." She shrugged a shoulder at him.

"But where is the fun in that?" he asked honestly and saw her turning around with an even wider grin on her face. She only hummed in reply and started to examine the cart he had brought turning her back to him slightly. From the corner of his eye, Andy took a moment to observe her closely. She didn't seem as upset anymore, which made him relax. He didn't like when she got so nervous about such small things. She had had enough heartbreak for a lifetime. Between the stories she had shared with him and the things he knew and had witnessed, the only thing he really wanted for her was to smile. At him. With him.

Andy moved to the table to grab the bag and started to empty it, passing her things that she arranged in a way that would be easy to retrieve when needed later on. He held the paper tablecloth, trying to remember where he had gotten it. She had put him on shopping duty, but most of the items he had had at home already, after the last barbecue he had hosted for the team. It was too long ago. Way before Julio's blatant anger management issues and before the colossal fuck up that was Stroh's escape. It was before everything had changed. He placed the cloth on the cart so it would create an illusion of neat preparation and resolute in his mind that after the next case, whatever it would be, he would organize another lazy Saturday afternoon for all of them. Inviting the team and their families to unwind and forget about the gruesomeness of life. It was summer and his back yard was ready for some guests.

"I have your phone," she held out the device she had borrowed earlier that evening, before he had gone to change. She had needed it because there were photos of Buzz saved on it that she had wanted to show the desk sergeant stationed at the building's main entrance. She wanted the young man to let them know the precise moment when Buzz entered the building. Andy had teased her about it, saying that it would freak the sergeant out if the captain of Major Crimes herself asked him, or even gave him the order to alert her.

She had been going a bit overboard about this whole thing, but when she had pouted and pursed her lips with intention, he was hopelessly distracted. He was lost, and in that moment, along with his phone, he would have given her just about anything.

"How scared was the kid downstairs?" He was sure the young guard would have been shocked at even seeing her there.

"Oh stop it. He was indeed surprised by my request, but I didn't intimidate him that much."

"Mhm... I'm sure that's true. I'm also sure the man will be on his best behavior for the whole night and many nights to come. And he was red in the face."

"Am I that bad?" There was some uncertainty in her voice.

"No, but your reputation precedes you. It's not a bad thing. Also... it was fun to watch." His laughter was hard to contain.

"Don't tell me you asked someone to get the security camera footage?" her disbelief was reaching the point of incredulity.

"Me? No. Provenza did, and Mike was very happy to help, too." When she rolled her eyes at him, he went on, "Oh come on Sharon, it was a great watch. The guy practically sweat through his uniform. We almost felt bad for him."

"Hmm." She considered his words for a moment and recalled the scared face of Officer Reynolds. He did indeed go a bit pale when she made him repeat her request, three times.

Once she handed him his phone Andy's attention was drawn to her fingers as they moved along the white and red strips on the tablecloth. The slow movements of her hand hypnotized him as she traced invisible patterns on the paper. Once more it was difficult to guess her mood.

"Did you have a cake?" he asked trying to get her attention away from whatever place her mind had drifted off to again.

"Hmm?" she hummed in inquiry, not fully understanding his question.

"I mean, for your first ride-along, did you have any cake?"

"Well, not like that. You know how it was. They just lined us up and we draw the name of the officer who would take us on the first tour from the bowl." Her brows drew together trying to bring the memory back from where it was hidden.

"So who did you got?" He was curious now.

"Oh," she snorted at him, "I got the worst possible. Ever."

"Do tell. No, let me guess. Sergeant Rodriguez," he said with bit of pride remembering what a pain that man could be with rookies and how bad the man's temper was. He just didn't have any patience for the mistakes or excitement that new officers brought to the job. Andy himself had had a few heated exchanges of ideas with the man. Old Rodriguez was just a grouch, a hard man to deal with, but he had known everyone and had helped to school a whole generation of LAPD officers.

"No. Guess again."

"That is a hard one. I don't think there was anyone worse than Thomson, but then he rarely took rookies on a tour. If it was him, you had an awfully unlucky day."

"I agree, I heard stories, good thing that he retired shortly after we started. No there was another delightful officer with whom everyone hated to have a first ride-along."

"Carter?" he tired.

"Wrong again. Alright, I will tell you. It was Detective Hamilton." The second the man's name slipped out of her mouth, she made a disgusted face which made Andy chuckled under his breath.

"Oh. I think I know what you mean. He was... hm... how do I put it in a delicate way... a male chauvinistic pig and I'm being generous here. Yep, I'm sure you and all the women of LAPD would agree with me." He grinned at her, showing some genuine sympathy.

She laughed at his words and the truthfulness they held. "You have no idea how many times he called me baby. At some point I even started to count it. The whole night was surreal, if I think about it. So many things happened. Before it started, I was so nervous and excited and then Hamilton happened and..." she trailed off leaving Andy staring at her with curiosity.

"I want to know more", he insisted walking up to her and leaning on the edge of the table as she stood in front of him, her own posture relaxing.

"Well, there is not much to tell. The ride started off in a terrible way. I guess he called me 'Doll' and said he wouldn't even be bothered to learn my name. As he put it, I was just 'one of the many pretty faces that were lucky enough to ride with him.'" She made a pouting sort of grimace at the memory of his words, "He drove me around. We basically went from bar to bar to meet up with off duty buddies of his and it felt like he was just showing me off. It was horrible, Andy. My uniform smelled like an ash tray." She stopped fidgeting, becoming engrossed in her story and comfortably took a step closer to him. "Oh, and then he insisted we go to Hollywood Boulevard, saying that he had to talk to a PI and that it was something I should experience. However, when we were halfway there, we got a 5150, which sounded like a bad joke. But it turned out to be a classic officer involved in a bar fight thing." Her eyes locked directly on his, full of meaning. More than a few times a report of a fight with his name on it had ended up on her desk. Andy reached out for her hand and their fingers intertwined. "It was a mess. No one wanted to call IA, so... hm... I did it," her voice went bit soft and held a depth of emotion.

"You did not?" he accused with surprise as his thumb started stoking her palm.

"Oh yes. It was a rule, Andy. You should always call IA for those things, especially if an officer was hurt in the process."

"I bet Hamilton loved that." His sarcasm didn't go unnoticed.

"He was furious. Oh my God, I was sure he would give me the worst evaluation or even make me repeat the whole ride. But at that point, after being insulted and mistreated, really it was a relief when IA finally showed up."

"Who was in charge back then? Ferrero? Let me guess he was the one who offered to have you transferred?"

"You are right about that. Captain Ferrero and I worked closely for years to come. He said I had potential and offered me an interesting position. I could never pass it up. And..." there was a sparkle of mischievousness dancing in her eyes, "it gave me a wonderful opportunity for revenge," she whispered leaning closely to him, stepping between his legs.

"Revenge?" It was hard for Andy to imagine her using her IA position for revenge or even for personal favors. It was beneath her.

"Well, nothing as scandalous as you might think, and it came many years later, but you have no idea how much satisfaction it brought me to see the look on Hamilton's face when I was finally able to send him to three weeks of sensitivity classes and then two weeks of a diversity seminar after that." She snorted a laugh at him, leaning even closer.

With one simple tug he could have her in his arms, there was even a fraction of a second were he considered doing it.

"That was you? I only heard about it."

"Yep, that was me," She said proudly now. "Oh. Fun times."Sharon reached up and gathered her hair pulling it over her left shoulder and exposing her neck to him.

"Yeah, being the Wicked Witch and all, I bet you had your fun."

His whispered words imprinted on her cheek, and she felt his balmy breath against her. Sharon tried to take a breath but it caught in her throat, her stomach tying in a tight knot."It did have its ups and downs," she managed to answer, her tone pitching down matching his.

A lock of hair slipped down, loose against her shoulder. Andy's fingers itched to tuck it behind her ear, but he fought the urge. Suddenly, they both become very aware of the fact that they were so near to each other.

The touch of their hands created an intimacy that held them bonded together. They were in the work place, but she couldn't bring herself to step away from him. There was something about him tonight, something that fascinated her, and he wasn't making it any easier for her as his thumb started to stroke the inside of her wrist with purpose. Little jolts of pleasure traveled through her hand up her arm causing a shudder to run down her spine. His eyes lit up with the knowledge of how his touch was affecting her. His smile giving him away, Andy enjoyed the closeness just as much she did.

"What about you?" she searched his eyes, and found them fixed on the skin of her neck. She tilted her head even more teasing him in the process. Sharon knew how unfocused he became every time she moved her hair out of the way. It wasn't the first time he had stared at her so blatantly. It was getting easier and easier to lose all perspective when they were alone. Sharon had to squeeze his hand to get a reaction out of him.

"What about me?" he asked a matter-of-factly.

She rolled her eyes at him leaving him smirking.

"Trust me, it was nothing exciting," there was a sadness easily detectable in his voice.

"Be fair. Tell me about it." she insisted at last.

"Well, it was the most boring experience of my entire cop life." The dramatic tone he used earned him a chuckle.

"I'm serious."

"Who went with you?"

"Williams. It was torture." He shook his head, and it was her turn to play with his long fingers, leaving him tingling. "It was a damn cliché. We started at the donuts shop right around the corner from the old Parker Center. He bought so many of them, that I thought we were going to visit some homeless centers or something, but boy, was I wrong. He ate them all. No wonder he was so fat. That's all we did. Drive from place to place and buy more donuts. I think after that day, I couldn't look at one for over a year." He sighed with defeat and took a long breath before he continued. "I was ready to shove one of them down his throat. But then finally, we got a call. I think it was a 647. We drove to Hancock Park where there was this crazy lady in the street holding her cat and pointing at a black man trying to open a car door with a wire hanger. She was really something that lady. We tried to calm her down, but she kept shouting at the man that she thought was trying to steal the car. Long story short, the guy just had trouble with his lock and the lady hated black men in general." He felt her hand touching his arm in reassurance. "And the worst part was Williams thought it was a victory. That we had solved some difficult disturbance case, so he wanted to celebrate. Guess where we went?"

"Oh Gosh."She started to laugh at him, her merriment growing until there were unshed tears sparkling in her eyes.

"Yeah, to get donuts."He looked at her with amusement. It seemed like she enjoyed him being miserable. "When I first got in the squad car, before the ride-along started, I was buzzing with energy. I was so proud and secretly wished I would become the next Chief of Police," he stilled the movements of her hand and brought it to his lips, for a kiss, "and look, where are we now."

Her laughter stilled and she went silent considering his words and biting her lip in the process. "Yes... I think when it all started I just wanted to be a cop." A sudden longing enveloped them like a soft cloud, leaving them suspended in their stories.

She was so close to him. With every breath she took, the soft weight of her breasts pressed against his torso. There was a whisper of space between them and yet it was prohibitive to breach it. Her fingertips traced the image on the badge pinned to his chest. Slowly she outlined City Hall and then the word Lieutenant marking his rank.

They were bonded in duty. They were bonded in friendship, and that union was shifting into something deeper and more loving. It was only a matter of time and courage for both to get there.

Andy leaned towards her, his face nuzzling her temple, breathing in her unique scent, and then he slid his nose slowly down. Sharon hummed quietly at the contact, but it reverberated in his soul. With her eyes closed, her hand traveled from his badge to his shoulder. When his lips kissed her cheek in a warm caress, she held him there. Her fingers combed through the short hair right at the nape of his neck as his mouth pressed against her chastely. A gesture they had repeated so many times by now, but it felt different this time. It was an imprint of the nostalgia they shared with a breath of memories.

A knock at the door brought them back to reality. Rusty was outside in the hallway trying to balance the cake in one hand and waving at them for help with the other. They parted but not without a shared smile that gave a lightness to their hearts.

It was time to get ready for Buzz's big moment.

It was time to create new memories.

* * *

 _Thank You and... Happy Shandy Sunday!_


End file.
